by Rachel George, USA TODAY Sports

by Rachel George, USA TODAY Sports

ATLANTA - Malcolm Armstead spent the NCAA tournament last year watching his team from Wichita, working while he sat out the year.

A transfer guard from the University of Oregon, Armstead had taken a circuitous path to Wichita State, one that included him paying his own way and working a job as the Shockers finished 27-6 and with a loss to Virginia Commonwealth in their first NCAA tournament game.

Although the Shockers were on the road â?? in the tournament or otherwise â?? Armstead was often at Lubbers, a car dealership where he detailed vehicles, changed oil and rotated tires.

Fast-forward a year, and Armstead has helped lead ninth-seeded Wichita State to its first Final Four since 1965 and second in school history. The Shockers (30-8) face Louisville (32-5), the top overall seed, at the Georgia Dome in the first national semifinal Saturday at 6:09 p.m.

Armstead's journey has taken him from junior college to the Pac-12 and to midmajor Wichita State, where the senior has seen the reward for his sacrifice a year ago.

"I had to (work) to be able to stay in school and be able to be here this year. I looked at the big picture, tried to stay focused," he said Friday at the Georgia World Congress Center. "I had to look at the long run and how it was going to be my source of income."

After Armstead's run through the tournament, basketball could be. He was named the most outstanding player in the West Regional last weekend, leading WSU to wins against No. 1-seeded Gonzaga in the Round of 32 and a win against No. 2 Ohio State in the regional final.

He's averaged 13 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.75 assists and two steals a game in the tournament.

"If we don't have Malcolm Armstead this year, we're not sitting here talking about the Final Four," said coach Gregg Marshall. "Maybe not the NCAA tournament."

Armstead started his career at Chipola College in Marianna, Fla., where he played for now-Wichita State assistant coach Greg Heiar.

In the Shockers' locker room in the Georgia Dome on Friday, Heiar remembered Armstead as a little overweight at 220 pounds and more of a shooting guard coming out of high school. Now listed at 205 pounds, the 6-foot point guard has improved on defense, a hallmark of Wichita State's team this year.

"He's never been scared to take the big shot or make the big play," Heiar said. "Now he's gotten himself in such good shape, he's playing through his fatigue and he's not making those mental mistakes to turn the ball over and he's not taking plays off defensively."

After two seasons at Oregon where he started 52 games, Armstead opted to transfer. Explaining it to his father, Jesse, as a business decision, he reunited with Heiar at Wichita State.

"If you're doing what you're supposed to do and performing how you're supposed to perform, people are going to find you," he said. "They're going to see you."

Though he had familiarity with his coach, the Shockers didn't have a scholarship available for him. So Armstead went to work, and he took out student loans to pay his way last year. He didn't have a guess of how much but quipped, "I'm pretty sure it will be big."

His parents, both former basketball players, supported him throughout the difficulty of sitting out a year.

"Most people would say, 'I don't want to do that,' " said Priscilla Armstead, his mother. "He was determined."

That meant juggling classes with practice and work, which sometimes meant missed time in the gym for time in the garage. A day before playing in the biggest game of his career, Armstead said he felt like his was supposed to get here.

Even before he came to Wichita State, Armstead talked about winning in the tournament. At Oregon, he felt closer to that dream, Priscilla said. Sitting out last season only made him more certain.

"He's always just embraced the challenge," said Heiar. "He was willing to sacrifice for a year, and he just wanted to be here. This is where he wanted to be."